Brick Store, on the NRHP in Georgia
The Brick Store is a commercial building erected in 1821 in Covington, Georgia, with sturdy brick walls and a simple rectangular shape. Over more than a century of operation, it functioned as a general store, post office, schoolhouse, courthouse, and meeting hall before closing in 1935.
Built in 1821 by Martin Kolb, one of the first white settlers in Newton County, the building hosted the first meeting of the Newton County Superior Court in April 1822. This event established it as a key site where formal governance began in the county.
The Brick Store served as a gathering place where community members bought goods and shared news from distant places. Local organizations held meetings within its brick walls, making it a social hub that connected people across generations.
The site is now a quiet historical area maintained by the Newton County Historical Society and listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Visitors can observe the aged brickwork and early-19th-century design, which demonstrate how early commercial structures were constructed.
From 1879 to 1884, the building housed the International Order of Good Templars lodge, with owner Peter Knox using it as a meeting space for this temperance movement. This unexpected use reveals how commercial buildings of that era served as centers for social reform movements.
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